Bangor Home Show set for April 20-22 at Bass Park

By Brian Swartz, Of the Weekly Staff •April 11, 2012 4:13 pm

People attending the 42nd Annual Bangor Home Show will see “a lot of new products” as exhibitors pack their wares and head to Bass Park, according to Dean Appleman of All Seasons Promotions, based in West Springfield, Mass.

The show takes place every April at the Bangor Auditorium and Bangor Civic Center — with some exhibits spilling outdoors — and as has happened these last few years, Appleman reported that “right now, I am at maximum” for display space.

“My phone is off the hook,” he said. “The word got out in the U.S., and the Bangor Home Show is the one [that] everyone wants to end their season with.

“But I will squeeze everybody in somewhere,” Appleman said. “Everyone wants to be in this show.”

The 42nd Annual Bangor Home Show will take place April 20-22 at Bass Park, where on-site parking is free. The show admission is $7 per adult, but area newspapers — including the Bangor Daily News — will offer discount coupons good for $2 off the admission price.

“It’s the most reasonable $5, with the biggest bang for your buck in the country,” Appleman said. And, he hastened to add, a show visitor can get a ticket stamped before leaving the show and return free any other time during the weekend — simply by displaying the stamped ticket at the Bangor Auditorium kiosks.

Admission is free for children age 12 and under when they are accompanied by an adult.

The show hours are:

• 1-9 p.m., Friday, April 20;

• 10 a.m.-9 p.m., Saturday,

• 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sunday, April 22.

At most other home shows, the doors officially close earlier, sometimes around 6 p.m. or 7 p.m., Appleman observed. The Bangor show “is still one of the longer-houred running shows in the country. I have first-time exhibitors ask me, ‘Why do you stay open so late?’

“I tell them this Bangor Home Show could have 500 people in the building, buying product at 9 at night,” he said.

Appleman believes the mood is changing at his 2012 home shows, and he notices that exhibitors have responded accordingly.

“People didn’t want to buy last year,” he explained. “The economy is still tough, but in 2012, people realize they have to maintain their homes. The consumer confidence in buying is up this year; the smaller luxury products are becoming more popular.”

He mentioned “greenhouses priced under $10,000” as being attractive to “people … growing their own foods and produce. Maine has some of the richest soil in the country. People want to cut their grocery costs and guarantee fresh food by growing their own.

Saunas, decks, and hardwood floors “have never really lost their appeal,” he commented. “Flooring has always been hot. People want the gorgeous hardwood flooring in their homes. The high-tech hardwood flooring is popular. Bamboo [flooring] is hot.”

Out of doors, “stone work, outdoor patios, outdoor kitchens” are all the rage, according to Appleman. Homeowners are constructing outdoor patios with pavers as the flooring material and then installing patio furniture and an outdoor kitchen.

“Sheds are big; they’re coming back,” he said. “Alternative energy is still a hit with pellet fuels, gas inserts. People are looking to reduce their heating costs. A pellet stove or a gas insert can do that.”

For businesspeople operating home offices, shelving and office-related furniture are popular, Appleman indicated.

Collectively, Bangor Home Show distributors will feature “something for every economic situation,” he said. “For the do-it-yourselfer to the high-end homeowner, there will be products and services on display that can work with everyone’s budget.

“The buying confidence of this show is at an all-time peak,” Appleman said. “People are waiting for this show. The tax returns have come back, and people are ready to buy.

“You couldn’t find a better collection of businesses that what we have at this show,” he said. “Luckily the winter hasn’t been so bad,” and some contractors worked through the winter months.

“Now they’re looking for projects for the spring and summer. They want to meet potential customers and talk about their projects,” Appleman said. “This show is going to jump start everything.”

Appleman annually organizes six home shows in New England and usually ends that run with Bangor. The Portland show proceeds the Queen City’s, but the Bangor show takes the visitation honors.

“Bangor has always drawn more people,” Appleman said, noting that “I’m anticipating a gangbuster [attendance], 18,000-21,000 people. In Portland I get a 30-mile radius [that] people are coming from. In Bangor, I get a three-hour radius.

“This show has a reputation and a name. They come down from Fort Kent and Madawaska,” he said.

In November 2013, All Seasons Promotions will add a seventh home show by introducing the Eastern States Fall Home Show at the Eastern States Exposition in West Springfield, Mass. “When I do this one, the vendors will be coming from all over,” Appleman said.

“We are having a good show season,” he said. “I’m looking forward to Bangor.”

He invited Bangor Home Show visitors to check out the All Seasons Promotions’ Web site at www.homeshows.com. Above Appleman’s signature, the Web site stresses, “We bring together the region’s finest builders, remodelers and local businesses.”